Boks responding to Lions call

Springbok head coach Peter de Villiers has said that the looming presence of the Lions tour is having a positive effect on the performance of his players in this year's Super 14.

The Lions arrive in South Africa in less than three months time and de Villiers knows that South Africans wishing to feature against the tourists are raising their game in order to do so.

"From my point of view as Springbok coach, it is pleasing to see most of our core squad players performing, even if their teams are not winning," said de Villiers, who is currently in Dubai watching South Africa attempt to add the World Cup Sevens crown to the 15-a-side title they won in Paris in October 2007.

" The guys are clearly responding to the challenge of earning places in the squad to face the British & Irish Lions in June and July."

With the Bulls and Sharks living up to their pre-season billing as tournament heavy weights, the prediction de Villiers made last season about South African teams dominating the semi-final stages may well come true, albeit 12 months later than predicted.

"The Bulls' and the Sharks' early Super 14 performances have been encouraging and it is pleasing to see them unbeaten after three matches and setting the pace at the head of the table," de Villiers told sarugby.co.za.

"Both teams have put in mixed performances in getting their victories but, in a competition as tough as the Super 14, some victories will be hard-earned and not pretty.

"The Bulls' win over the Blues was possibly the most complete performance of the season. They created chances which came off and they had the Blues under the whip from the word go.

"Some might consider the Sharks lucky to have got a win over the Chiefs in Hamilton but the tries they created were out of the top drawer. The win showed just how effective a team can be if they kick with intelligence and precision.

"Whilst the Bulls and Sharks are well-placed at the moment, our other sides have struggled at times and been unfortunate at others.

"The Stormers played most of the rugby against the Blues but let chances go begging. With the talent they have at their disposal they will bounce back.

"The Lions have also shown improvement this season and I expect them to get back on track. The Cheetahs were unlucky in their opening two matches and are currently on a very tough tour. A good home run will help their cause greatly."

In this weekend's round of Super 14 matches, four of the five South African sides are in action, all on Saturday.

The table-topping Bulls face fellow South African franchise the Stormers in Pretoria, the third-placed Sharks travel to Auckland to face the Blues, and bottom side the Cheetahs are in Wellington to take on the Hurricanes, while the Lions have a week off.

Ryan Grant displayed some impressive singing skills while on tour with the British & Irish Lions. The full release of Lions Raw will be available on DVD and Blu-Ray from October 28th. Pre-order on Amazon.

This clip featuring Simon Zebo will whet your appetite ahead of the much anticipated release of 'Lions Raw', the official Behind the Scenes documentary of the successful 2013 Tour. Full release on October 28th and available on DVD and Blu-Ray.